Data from Bitcoin’s blockchain shows that small addresses continue to accumulate BTC, while whales adopt a “sell when the price goes up” strategy.
BTC, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, nearly touched $90,000 on Tuesday morning, and is currently trading around $87,400, up 27% in just the past week.
According to the analysis, the recent buying momentum has been driven largely by the Nasdaq-listed Coinbase exchange, which is typically representative of U.S.-based financial institutions. However, detailed data shows that small addresses – often referred to as “shrimps” – are actively increasing their BTC holdings to benefit from the rally.
Retail investors become “smart money”
Data from Glassnode analyzes groups of addresses ranging from less than 1 BTC, known as “shrimps,” to over 10,000 BTC, known as “humpback whales.” A value close to 1 indicates that group is accumulating, while a value close to 0 indicates distribution.
Over the past two months, except for the humpback whales, the rest of the groups have been actively accumulating BTC, matching the price increase from around $55,000 in September to nearly $90,000 today.
This data challenges the notion that whales are the “smart money” in the ecosystem. Whales sell when prices surge, while retail investors buy. The analysis shows that retail investors have become the smart money over time.
Demand remains higher than supply for three months
When aggregated across groups such as miners, exchanges, and retail investors over the past 30 days, the total amount of BTC accumulated by these groups is 26,000 BTC. This demand has consistently exceeded supply since September, showing stability over the past three months.
Long term and short term investors
Glassnode defines long-term investors (LTHs) as those who have held BTC for more than 155 days. This group typically sells during strong price increases, such as Bitcoin's 2017 and 2021 peaks, and accumulates during price declines. However, they are currently holding their positions, indicating that they expect the price to continue rising. It may take a higher price for long-term investors to consider selling.
Long-term investors now hold 78% of the Bitcoin supply, or more than 15 million BTC. They have reduced their holdings by only about 3% over the past month, far less than the 20% declines seen during previous price peaks in 2017 and 2021.
In contrast, short-term investors (STHs), those who have held BTC for less than 155 days and typically buy when prices are rising, are now holding the lowest amount of BTC ever, despite a slight increase. During previous bull runs, this group typically held 35-50% of the supply.
